Hall of North American Birds

The Leonard C. Sanford Hall of North American Birds features more than 20 dioramas that depict bird species in habitats ranging from the Florida Everglades to Alaskan riverbeds, with forests, prairies, marshes, and deserts among the ecosystems represented.

Hall Highlights

The Peregrine Falcon, the swiftest of all birds of prey, is one of the most widely distributed species of bird, nesting on every continent except Antarctica. The world's largest urban population of nesting Peregrine Falcons is in New York City.

Museum ornithologist Frank Chapman used habitat dioramas to call attention to the plight of endangered birds. In 1903, he persuaded President Theodore Roosevelt to establish the first Federal Bird Reserve, on Florida’s Pelican Island.